Abstract: The functions of the archives not only depend on the discussion and research of the academic community and the archivists but also need the recognition of different stakeholders. On the basis of 70 years’ 1209 news reports of People's Daily, the article adopts the theoretical framework of internal perspective and external perspective, and through empirical research, preliminarily summarizes the mainstream views of Chinese society regarding the functions of archives over the past 70 years. The findings including (1)over the last 70 years, official media’s recognition and understanding of the archives are gradually rising, especially in the occasion of important commemorative events;(2)there see more functions and more social of the archives, and the archives are becoming more socialized;(3)since the Reform and Opening up, the image of the archives in the official media tend to be more active, positive and open. The core purpose of this paper is to provide a new observational perspective for the functional changes and future development of archives from a macro level, and to provide pieces of discuss data for researchers and practitioners concerned with the future of archives and archival science.
XIAO Peng, LIAO Shuyu. The Functions and its Evolution of the Archives in the Perspective of China’s Official Media: A Study on the News Report of People’s Daily. Archives Science Study, 2020, 34(1): 111-118.
